Irish bishops’ ‘empty gestures’ on safeguarding under fire

THE FORMER head of the church body set up to protect children in Ireland this week attacked the country’s bishops, accusing them of “minimal responses and empty gestures” when dealing with clerical abuse.

Ian Elliott, who was chief executive of the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland (NBSCCCI) for six years, warned the Irish hierarchy that it must address a number of serious issues if it is to build an effective safeguarding structure

In an online article on his website, titled “The Basis for Trust”, Mr Elliott revealed that during the course of his work he met with “misinformation and misrepresentation” from the Irish hierarchy and other church bodies “which shocked me then and still does today”. Mr Elliott accused the Irish hierarchy “of minimal responses and empty gestures to convey an impression of something that is not truly felt”.

“If change was sincere then there would be less need for public relations consultants or media managers,” he challenged.

He called for safeguarding practice to be independently examined and findings to be made public.

Speaking to The Tablet, Mr Elliott said the question of the national board’s independence was “a critical one”, saying: “I have had examples of reviews being blocked. Indeed, the situation in the Diocese of Cloyne [where a government inquiry was launched after child protection services were found to be inadequate] is one example but it is not the only one.”

A spokesman for the Irish bishops said that bishops “have been consistent in promoting a culture of child safeguarding in their respective dioceses and in resourcing best practice”.

Director of communications for the Irish bishops’ conference Martin Long confirmed that the national board has completed its review of all 26 dioceses on the island of Ireland and is undertaking reviews of religious congregations.

Responding to the allegations a spokesman for the NBSCCCI said that in an article for the Irish Times in 2011 Mr Elliott had himself defended the board’s independence and role in bringing Cloyne’s “inadequate and dangerous practices” to the Church’s attention.